Essential Trading is celebrating a successful Fairtrade Fortnight where it been – literally – flying the flag for Fairtrade projects and highlighting the Fairtrade products in its range.
Essential Trading is one of the largest worker co-operatives in the UK and, says marketing manager, a proud pioneer in the Fairtrade food industry. She says: “It was wonderful to see the Essential flags flying during Fairtrade Fortnight in the heart of Bristol’s City Centre and to be associated so directly with Bristol Fairtrade.”
Bristol was celebrating a full decade as a Fairtrade City, as one of only 5 cities that have held this status continually for ten years, and has been named European Green Capital for 2015. Sarre continues: “The people of Bristol have cultivated a thriving ethical and nutritious food culture and Essential in turn flourishes by being part of it. Essential actively develops and nurtures trading partnerships which ensure a fair wage and community development. Fairtrade defines the ethos of Essential.”
Essential has a long track record of bringing ethical alternatives and Fairtrade products to the marketplace and has gained full organic and Fairtrade accreditation to pack commodities in its purpose-built facility in Bristol. Take Essential Peppermint Tea for example, which takes centre stage in the wholesaler’s new ‘Pure as heaven, tasty as hell’ campaign. This is part of a range of Fairtrade teas produced by Essential’s farming partners at Sekem in Egypt, a project founded in 1977 which has today become a co-operative of more than 2,000 co-workers. The original 70 hectares of land at Sekem have expanded to over 2,500 hectares, providing jobs and livelihood for thousands of workers and their families in the local community.
Bristol will also host the International Fairtrade Towns Conference at Bristol Conference Centre 4-5 July.
